Wednesday, January 20, 2010

PARADISE VALLEY, AZ. JANUARY 19, 2010. Vernon Parker is in. Today, Paradise Valley Mayor Vernon Parker announced that he will file paperwork this week to succeed Republican John Shadegg.

“Our district has a long history of sending Goldwater conservatives to Congress – public servants who fiercely value liberty, smaller government and personal responsibility,” Parker said. “To follow Congressman Shadegg wouldn’t simply be an honor. It would give me the chance to continue a fight for the hard-working families I have fought for all my life,” he said.

Parker, 50, said that Shadegg’s retirement created a “perfect storm” of opportunity, one he feels duty-bound to embrace. He had spent the past three months exploring the Arizona Governor’s race, which generated enthusiastic support from people across the state.

“The biggest constant in my public life has been the need to serve to the fullest, to use whatever talent God has given me to the utmost degree possible,” said Parker. “I believe my skills, my experience and my passion are made for Congress. I believe I can make the biggest difference for my neighbors and my fellow Arizonans there. Since learning of Congressman Shadegg’s decision my supporters have overwhelmingly encouraged me in this direction.”

Parker said that he will take his message of cutting taxes and creating policies that help the private sector create jobs to the nation’s capital.

Following his filing this week Parker will be hosting a grassroots events on Sunday for 200-300 supporters, followed by a major announcement next week with significant endorsers and a few surprises.

“Like Congressman Shadegg I will do everything I can to roll back the unfunded federal mandates that cripple Arizona and our communities. And I will do everything I can to reform health care that brings real choice to the people and put an end to the insanity that defines America’s immigration policy,” he said.

BACKGROUND

Parker announced an exploratory committee for Governor on September 23rd and since then raised his seed money faster than Governor Brewer, generated endorsements and excitement across the state and was on track to qualify for Clean Elections funding next month.

However, since the surprising announcement by Congressman John Shadegg that he will not seek re-election Parker has been called by dozens of supporters and state leaders encouraging him to consider a run for the Congressional District Three Republican nomination.

Paradise Valley lies in the heart of the district, where just two years ago Parker garnered a record number of votes in his initial run for office.

Parker, 50, is the current mayor of Paradise Valley, Arizona. He previously served as General Counsel of the United States Office of Personnel Management, then in the White House as Special Assistant to President George H. W. Bush. Later, Parker was nominated by President George W. Bush and unanimously confirmed with bipartisan support by the United States Senate, as an Assistant Secretary at the United States Department of Agriculture. A small businessman Parker also served as a pastor for two years at a small non-denominational church in Paradise Valley. He is a graduate of Georgetown Law School in Washington, D.C., where he met his wife Lisa.

Parker’s life story is compelling. Raised by his grandmother in a severely underprivileged neighborhood in Long Beach, California Paker was able to escape the drugs and violence through love, education and the commitment of family.